The Mouse Market

Sketching on a Bumpy Road

Yesterday, I mentioned that I had a number of changes I’d like to implement in my booth display, and hopefully in time for my next show in a couple of weeks. These ideas are specific to my jewelry table, and not really applicable to my dollhouse show display, which will make sense once I explain what I have in mind. I sketched out a rough draft of the idea on a napkin while driving back from Knoxville–well, I wasn’t the one driving, as that would have been pretty impressive (or incredibly foolish, depending on how you look at things)–but since it’s about as intelligible as hieroglyphics, a little explaining is probably in order.

Summer in Paris Macaron Necklace

First off, I’m going to continue to use my blue table risers (which you can see in this picture), but I won’t be using my cork display boards, at least for this next show as I experiment with things a bit. The risers take up two-thirds of my table length-wise, and the remaining third typically serves as a spot for my mailing list sign-up, business cards, and other odds and ends. This time, I’d like to construct a simple wooden earring rack, and what I’m envisioning looks much like a book, propped open with shelves lining the inside (think science fair display, but with only two panels). My plan is to take two rectangular pieces of wood for the “pages” and one strip of wood that will serve as the spine of the book. Each rectangle will be attached to the spine with hinges so that I can fold the shelving unit up after each use. The inside will be lined with little wooden strips that will become ledges for my earrings, and I’ll stagger the strips so that the “book” will close easier.

Makeover: Fauxstess Cupcake Earrings

This wooden display will completely open up my table risers, and I plan to construct a few t-bar style necklace and bracelet stands out of wood scraps and collect random bowls and plates from the thrift store to create a more varied jewelry display on the risers. Ideally, I would like to have little “clumps” of products, such as a bowl filled with Parisian pastry earrings propped up in colored sand accompanied by a t-bar bracelet stand with similar accessories (and possibly a small selection of related dollhouse minis). That way, my table isn’t just a huge sea of earring cards, something that I think is a bit overwhelming for many shoppers, and I’ll also be able to fill more space with less product, something that will be helpful with the massive amount of room I have at this next show.

Poorly Lit View of My Tutorial CDs & Flyer

That leaves the space on the table surface in front of the wooden jewelry display. I’ll continue to use that as a spot for my mailing list and business cards, and I also have a set of CDs with my Summer Berry Tart tutorial that can be displayed here. The holiday custom order flyer that I brought to my last show was a huge hit, so I’m going to showcase that, along with a new flyer featuring custom jewelry options for the holidays, and these items should be more than enough to fill that space.

Cuteness at Great Smoky National Forest

We’re back! The Louisville show was a ton of fun, and while it wasn’t the best show I’ve had in a financial sense, I still did quite well, and it was totally worth it in other ways. I met so many wonderful people, both vendors and customers, and I also met one of the regional coordinators for the National Association of Miniature Enthusiasts (NAME), who was a wealth of helpful information, and she convinced me that I needed to apply for the NAME National Convention in July 2011. The deadline was yesterday, which was also the day that we were driving home, so there was a bit of circus-style finagling at FedEx Office as I pulled photos from my Flickr page to use for the application, but I managed to get everything in on time.

Unbelievably Gorgeous Rainbow Falls Trail

Why all the fuss? Well, for one thing, it’s a huge show with tons and tons of people, and the vendor selection process is pretty competitive, so it would be really exciting to have the opportunity to participate. Of course, the stories of artists who sold out on the first day at past conventions also doesn’t damper my enthusiasm.

Straight-Branched Coral Fungi, Perhaps?

I have so many things to share about the trip, but I want to give you the low down on my Etsy shop sale before I get carried away. While talking to other vendors and shoppers at the show, my eagerness to start making holiday minis and jewelry, which was already running high, reached near-dangerous levels, and I’ve decided to put a ton of pieces on sale in order to make room for my new pieces, otherwise my workspace will be completely overrun by teeny, tiny foods. So…be sure to check out the sale section of my shop, because there are roughly 80 discounted items, including loads of dollhouse pieces, and many of them are marked as much as 50% off. (I told you I went a little nuts.)

Tomorrow, more news on my upcoming projects, as well as additional thoughts on the Louisville show and how I plan to modify my booth for my St. Louis show in two weeks.

Original Martha Stewart Cake

I was feeling inspired yesterday to try something Halloween-y, so I decided to tackle a Martha Stewart haunted house cake. I ended up making a few changes, but for the most part, I worked very closely with the photo at left. For the base of the cake, I used up leftover clay from the “eat me” caning debacle, and since I plan to make a great deal of holiday cakes in the coming months, I’m pretty sure I can reuse the rest of that massive project’s leftovers. Rather than swirling the icing like I normally do, I used a toothpick to smooth the frosting in one, long sweep, much like I would with an offset spatula when frosting a real cake.

A Haunted, Little Cake

No question, the house and the tree took the most time, and I made them out of a thin sheet of chocolate brown clay, slicing away sections here and there with a blade. The shingles are cocoa-dusted white chocolate pieces, and I made a Skinner blend of yellow and orange for the windows and doors. I chose to make a little ghost peeking out of the front entryway, rather than the figure in the Martha cake. The crumbled dirt on the tops of the layers is baked clay, chopped to look like chocolate, and the chocolate covered almonds ringing the bottom layer are little balls of a darker chocolate clay. I had hoped that there would be more of a contrast between the frosting and the other components, but after baking, the frosting took on a much darker hue, so I’ll have to adjust next time. (See more pics on my Flickr page.) Sneak peek: When I get back, I’ll be working on a tutorial for a haunted gingerbread house.

Chocolate-y Details

Well, this is it, folks. I’ll be gone until next Tuesday night, and if you happen to purchase anything in my Etsy shop, keep in mind that orders won’t ship until first thing Wednesday morning, so apologies in advance for the delay. If you’re in the Louisville area, be sure to check my show page for directions to the show, and in the meantime, have a great week, and I look forward to sharing my mini show stories when I get back!

Replacement Buffet Section Minis

Well, believe it or not, I’m actually ready for the show. I’ve finished all of the miniatures that I needed in order to fill any gaps in my display created by Etsy sales, and since I typed up pricing placards weeks ago, all I had to do was double check that any sold items had been removed and hit “print.” I do need to make a quick trip to FedEx Office to get a copy of my holiday custom order flyer printed and laminated, but that’s about it. I can’t wait!

Cookies Galore!

Last night, I had a few unscheduled hours after dinner, and it was too dark to make new jewelry pieces, so I worked on my Halloween-Christmas plan. I managed to fill two pages with ideas, and then I carefully went over every piece and compiled a list of any additional supplies that I would need to create them. Halloween is definitely my favorite holiday, and I can’t tell you how eager I am to start making spooky cakes, cookies and other treats, along with a few miniature paper decorations and other non-food items that I’ll be experimenting with this year.

P.S. Check out my Flickr page for more photos of my recent minis.

Upcoming Show Booth Plan

The past few days have felt really productive, and being able to cross the Aztec Imports (dollhouse miniatures) order off of my list was a huge relief. I should be well-stocked in minis for at least a few months. Yesterday, I received an Ebay notification that one of my watched items, a 10′ by 10′ EZ-Up Tent was on sale from a seller who already offers free shipping, so I decided to go for it. At $99, the tent was the cheapest I’ve found, and I feel confident that I’m buying a good quality tent, since I know a number of artists who use that brand. Usually, brand doesn’t really factor into my purchasing decisions, but after reading one horrible Amazon.com review after another for a no-name brand of the same tent, I was pretty terrified to end up with an expensive purchase that might fall apart after one use.

Meats and Soups

This afternoon, I spent a few hours setting up my practice booth display, mapping out which sections need a little work and which areas are pretty much done. I’m excited to say that roughly 80% of the table is completely finished, which is amazing, because I still have one month before the show. Granted, things will likely sell between now and then, but my plan is to create pricing signs in Adobe Illustrator and wait to print them until the week of the show. That way, I can delete any sold items and replace them with new pieces that I’ve made without wasting any paper.

Pizza and Breads

Speaking of pricing, I’ve decided to spread my pieces out a bit more this time, which has made the table seem so much less cluttered, and I’m leaving spots on the surface of the display to accommodate pricing, so my signs aren’t sticking up all over the place and obstructing the view of other pieces. For example, on my wooden stair step displays, I left enough room on each step for a flat pricing placard, which I think is far better than the vertical signs that I propped next to each stair at the last show. It looked so messy, and I think it was harder for shoppers to quickly find the prices they needed. Hope everyone has been enjoying a lovely weekend!

Vegetarian Lasagna

With July passing me by, it’s nearly time to start working on miniatures for my August dollhouse show. I’ve been pretty disciplined about making new jewelry pieces for the past two weeks, and while I still have about 100 more pieces to complete before the enormous September show, the world shouldn’t come grinding to a halt if I take a break to restock my dollhouse minis. And it’s looking as if I might have just enough room in my budget to place that Aztec Imports order I’ve babbled about excitedly in previous posts, which means that I’ll be one step closer to creating my first series of roomboxes–yay!

Pancetta Wrapped Pork Loin

I have the first stages of my online store set up completed, and now, it’s just a matter of waiting for confirmation from Google Checkout before I list my first handful of items. I’m sure it will take me awhile to get the hang of everything and to work out the design details and the organization of the shop sections, but I’m excited to be that much closer to my goal. Things are really starting to come together!

Cardamom-Fig Stuffed Pork

Last but certainly not least, I want to create my first tutorial this week before I start working on my dollhouse pieces, and this is where I could use your help. I seem to change my mind on which item I want to make for the tutorial every time I think about it, so perhaps you can decide for me. I can either make a savory or a sweet food, and here are the choices: pepperoni pizza, a cheeseburger, macarons or fruit tarts. Whichever food I end up making, I’ll include instructions for the dollhouse miniature and the jewelry version. So, whaddya say? Which teeny food should play a starring role in my very first tutorial? If you have a moment, please leave your vote in the comment section, and I’ll be starting work on the winning tutorial later this week. I, and my indecisive brain cells, thank you in advance for your help!

Hamster Welcoming Party in Full Swing

Yesterday’s post seemed like more of an overview of the entire weekend, and I realized that I didn’t spend much time talking about the show itself, so here goes. To start, it was a bit smaller than I had envisioned with perhaps fifteen vendors total, but there seemed to be a fairly good crowd nonetheless. I didn’t do quite as well as I did at the Gateway Miniatures Fair, which was considerably larger, but I brought in roughly the same as I did at my very first show, the Beaux Arts Bizarre, and, considering that the Bizarre started on Black Friday, the supposed busiest shopping day of the year, I guess that’s not too shabby for a smaller show in the middle of June.

Using Blocks to Make the Benches Hamster Height

Nonetheless, I’m going to have to get as many things listed in my Etsy shop as soon as possible and keep my fingers crossed, because I need to find room in my budget to start stocking up on supplies for my fall shows. Plus, I need to lay out about $120 for a tent before my September show. I have to admit that it gets rather tiresome to essentially live from show to show, even though I’m on a very strict, careful budget, and my idea of a shopping spree is splurging on a $6 dress from the thrift store, but hopefully the holiday season will bring more lucrative events that will allow me to put a more substantial chunk of change aside. (The pictures accompanying this post are of the Hamster Welcoming Party, which I’ll be writing about in greater depth tomorrow. In the meantime, party items will begin popping up in my Etsy shop.)

Tasty Treats--What to Eat First?

Speaking of putting money aside, thanks to a few very generous wedding gifts from family, Jake and I are a little over one-third of the way to a down payment on a piece of land. That is, if we’re able to find a suitable piece of property in our desired price range, which, judging from the available land listings in Tennessee, seems very possible. Even though we’re still a few years away from making such a purchase, this does accelerate our plans by a year or two, so I’ve returned to my steady reading diet of housebuilding and homesteading books, devouring everything from plumbing guides to rainwater catchment how-tos. Pretty exciting!

Eyes Bigger Than Their Stomachs

Before I get totally sidetracked, I’ll say a few more things about the show. The Moo Cards were a huge hit again, so to fellow sellers, if you have nice pictures of your work that you’d like to show off, these cards are a great way to do so, and customers love them. As for accepting credit cards…that ended up being a bust. A week before the show, I still hadn’t received my free card reader from Square, so I sent a message to support. A few days later a very courteous rep got back to me and explained that, due to high demand, the readers were back ordered for 6-8 weeks. Now, had I not sent an inquiry I doubt I would have received any notification, so while I’m still excited to use the service, it would have been really nice to get a heads up on the lengthy delay.

Yummy Brunch Spread

The most popular items this time around were breakfast dishes and breads, and I need to remind myself to make more individual pieces for my next show, i.e. loaves of bread, pieces of fruit, vegetables, bags of candy, etc. I forget that people often like to combine things in their own way (perhaps they have a picnic basket that they need to fill or a spot on a kitchen shelf that calls for a small item), and my complete meal plates or more elaborate preparation scenes are not always what they’re looking for. I also want to find a better way to organize things on my highest riser, because once it’s situated at the back of the table, it’s often hard for people to see what’s on it without leaning too far over the rest of the display, and I noticed that those items didn’t sell as well.

A Banquet Fit for...Hamsters?

Be sure to return tomorrow for the inside scoop on the Hamster Welcoming Party, along with details on the Nutmegs newest addition to the family, a feathered friend brought by Jellybean’s visiting cousins.

Three Blind Mice Booth

I’m back! Jake and I had a lovely, and incredibly busy, weekend, both with the miniatures show and family visits, and I’ll try to pare the events down to the necessary details, lest this turns into a five-part novel. We drove from Columbia, Missouri to Chicago on Thursday, and after sleeping like exhausted rocks, we woke up on Friday and headed over to the hotel to set up for the show, which opened that evening. The show was surprisingly busy, considering that many people were coming from work and fighting rush hour traffic (along with construction, which seemed to be taking place on all major roads simultaneously), and it was really wonderful to have my parents out to a show for the first time, so they could finally see what it is that I’m doing every day.

Mini Meats Section

On Saturday, my mom and my aunt paid me a visit, and they made the mistake of coming towards the end of the show, which meant that they got roped into tear down activities, a.k.a., putting teeny tiny foods into teeny tiny baggies, one at a time, but it was wonderful to see them. I was also treated to a surprise visit by a good friend and his lovely wife, and he also happens to be the only graphic design/writing client whom I’ve continued to work with since the minis have become my full-time job, because I love the work I do for him, so it was amazing to see them for the first time in two years.

On Saturday night after the show, my parents threw an incredible dinner party for us, complete with a wedding cake, and everyone was snapping pictures as Jake and I cut the first slice and rather sloppily fed each other huge forkfuls of frosting. My family and two of my oldest, bestest friends gave wonderful speeches, which of course made me cry (I tend to cry at anything and everything that’s the least bit emotional, including, but not limited to, heartfelt orations and cheesy commercials), and then we enjoyed delicious food and much-needed catching up, since I hadn’t been in the same state, much less the same room, with many of the guests in years.

A Dark Photo of the Dinner Section

Now that I’m back and most of the unpacking has been finished, I’m mentally taking stock of what’s next. I have an entire month–well, almost two months, actually–without shows, since my next dollhouse mini event is the last week of August, and if I use my time (and money) wisely, I should be able to get a head start on holiday preparations, both for my Etsy shop and my fall and winter shows. Plus, I want to work on the hamster party photo shoot and the bookshelf-turned-dollhouse project that, on top of being incredibly fun, will also give me new settings in which to photograph my minis, so I’m pretty excited to get to work. Over the next two weeks, I’ll be adding a ton of miniatures to my Etsy shop, and I hope to start working on new jewelry pieces, so stay tuned!

P.S. While I was away, the Mouse Market was treated to two lovely blog features: one on the Miniature Food Jewelry on Etsy team blog, the other on Marie-Nounou. Yay!

Large and Small Pizzas To Go

I was on a total pizza kick yesterday, and I printed up a bunch of little to-go boxes with “The Mouse Market Ristorante” emblazoned on the tops for my new mini pizzas. In addition to being really popular at my last show, the pizzas have the added feature of taking up a considerable amount of space, so my display is looking significantly less “gappy.” With the completion of these pieces, the Italian foods section is totally done, and as I was going over my progress before bed last night, I realized that the breakfast section is full as well. Hooray!

Plans for My Booth Layout

One of my wooden stair step displays has been divided between Asian and Mexican foods, so I think I’m going to call it a wrap on those, and I just need about five pieces to fill out the beef/pork/poultry sections, which combined, take up two entire stair steps. Not bad. I’ve also finished a turkey dinner spread and a roast beef dinner table, a seafood section (although I still want to make a few platters of roasted fish, as those sold out at my last show), a huge sandwich display, two tables of assorted soups, and an entire cardboard riser section of desserts. All in all, I think the booth is shaping up quite nicely, and if I can make roughly thirty more pieces in the next week, I’ll be feeling quite good.

Visit my Flickr galleries to see a larger photo of the booth layout, as well as an image of my cardboard risers with the dessert display.

Ginger-Peanut Somen Noodles w/ Miso-Glazed Cod

It’s getting to that point in the pre-show preparations when I need to start organizing my time a little bit more, and at the risk of taking up even more space in my room, I’m going to put together one of the new cardboard stair-step displays that I recently purchased so that I can set up all of my desserts, which are currently lumped in with the rest of the foods in my booth mock up. With everything together, it’s hard to tell how much more I would need to make to fill out, say, the pastry display or the world market section, so a little rearranging is in order.

Surf 'n' Turf Pizza w/ Grilled Sirloin & Smoked Salmon

I’ve also decided that I’m going to organize my booth by color, and the pastry section on the cardboard risers, which will be on the far left-hand side of my table, will be pink/red, and I’ll move through the colors of the rainbow in each section of the table from left to right. Now, the foods themselves won’t necessarily be matching in color, but any table coverings, party decorations, signage, etc., will be, and while I’m not sure how it will look once it’s all said and done, I’m excited about the experiment, because I always find myself drawn to color-grouped items.

Pop Rocks Pink Ice Cream Earrings

In addition to the foods and table settings, I need to start mapping out little gaps in the display where I can prop up photos of the Nutmeg family, i.e. a picture of their family picnic in the BBQ/picnic section, birthday party photos in the dessert section, that sort of thing. In addition to adding a touch of cuteness to the table (something the mice seem to excel at), the photos will also take up a little space, easing some of the pressure to make a bazillion more pieces between now and June 11.

Bittersweet Chocolate Fondue Spread

Speaking of a bazillion pieces, as my fall show schedule starts to fill out, I’ve started thinking about the logistics of filling a miniatures table in August, filling an enormous tent in September, creating strictly dollhouse pieces (no jewelry) for another show in October, making enough for two huge shows in November, and who knows what for December, all while keeping my online shop well stocked, particularly as holiday shopping season rolls around. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining–it all sounds rather exciting in a way–but after my show in June, I’m going to have to be very wise about budgeting my time and planning ahead, or I’m guaranteed to go completely batty this fall. Well, battier than usual, that is.